The Tablet: It's Not Business, It's Personal

What is a tablet and how can you get your mobile marketing customers to take notice?

Heretofore I have avoided tablets in my mobile strategy. They’re too…well…what are they? Neither desktop nor laptop nor phone, but a weird hybrid with some of the best features and limitations of each.

Well it’s time to put a stake in the ground. Here’s my take; give me yours and we’ll begin to write tablet marketing history together.

If you don’t already have a tablet, you need to get one immediately. While we marketers are not a good representation of the general public – we pay way more attention to advertising than regular people – you need to experience tablets in order to “get it.”

What you’ll see is that it’s not really a lightweight laptop. If your work day is spent in front of a computer, the tablet isn’t taking its place. The lack of keyboard, processing power, wireless range, ability to multitask, etc. makes it fall far short of our expectations of a business machine. Yes, there are those who will add keyboards and other peripherals to their tablets, but at the end of the day, aren’t they just trying to assemble a laptop?

It’s also not a large format smartphone. People don’ carry it with them 24/7 and, unlike a mobile phone, it’s likely to be shared among members of the household. According to Nielsen’s spring study, 43 percent of tablet owners report sharing it with others.

So what is a tablet?

It’s the ultimate personal entertainment device. You can use it for business, but it really shines during leisure hours. In the kitchen, it’s a cookbook; in the bedroom, it’s a book; on the road, it’s a mini entertainment center; in the family room, it’s a newspaper/magazine – a great way to browse headlines, sports, and sales.

There are myriad other uses, but you get the idea. I enjoyed the characterization of tablets in this excellent article as “…lean-back devices, meaning consumers are more likely to be in a relaxed mindset when interacting with a tablet.” This is supported by the Nielsen Q1 2011 Mobile Connected Device report with 70 percent of respondents saying they use their tablets while watching TV and 57 percent using it in bed.

The best news yet is for marketers. Many of our mobile tactics require no additional effort to be tablet-ready. Your mobile site and email program will render better on a tablet than a smartphone. Check-ins and QR scans are the province of the smartphone and not a consideration.

Effort does need to be expended, however, in application development. Do you need to develop an app for the tablet? Tablet users, while more likely to be young, affluent, and male, are rapidly moving to reflect the general population. Look to your website analytics to get a read on the percentage of customers accessing your site from a tablet to help make this call.

In addition to mobile marketing efforts; sales, customer service, and experiential marketing opportunities abound. Expect to see one-to-one interactions that take advantage of the compelling visuals and portability of the tablet. In the hands of a skilled company representative, this “lean-back device” can get customers to sit up and take notice.

Subscribe to get your daily business insights

Whitepapers

US Mobile Streaming Behavior
Whitepaper | Mobile

US Mobile Streaming Behavior

5y

US Mobile Streaming Behavior

Streaming has become a staple of US media-viewing habits. Streaming video, however, still comes with a variety of pesky frustrations that viewers are ...

View resource
Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics for Media Groups
Whitepaper | Analyzing Customer Data

Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics for Media Groups

5y

Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics f...

Data is the lifeblood of so many companies today. You need more of it, all of which at higher quality, and all the meanwhile being compliant with data...

View resource
Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its people
Whitepaper | Digital Marketing

Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its peopl...

2y

Learning to win the talent war: how digital market...

This report documents the findings of a Fireside chat held by ClickZ in the first quarter of 2022. It provides expert insight on how companies can ret...

View resource
Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Experience Economy
Report | Digital Transformation

Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Experience Economy

1m

Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Exp...

Customers decide fast, influenced by only 2.5 touchpoints – globally! Make sure your brand shines in those critical moments. Read More...

View resource